Popped into Lipscombe Larder today, just to compare them with my usual shopping venues of Hill Street Grocers and Salad Bowl, and found a veritable cornucopia of goodies there. It was like Aladdin’s cave, full of all sorts of products to delight any food lover or cook.
I reckon I could tick off my complete list of Christmas presents for everyone at that shop, and more.
Getting all your shopping done in one shop pleases me greatly.
One Christmas many years ago, in the days when Rita was rich, we travelled to do our Christmas shopping to London, specifically to Harrods. I bought everything I needed to buy there, and Harrods remains my spiritual home, especially for present-buying.
If you know Rita at all, you’ll know that essentially she detests shopping. It HAS to be done, so it is, and always has been. But I hate it. I especially hate buying clothes. I’ll always scam second-hand clothes from my daughters before I’ll take the trip into town to buy new clothes – not because I’m a tight-arse but because I HATE clothes-shopping.
Lippy Larder doesn’t come anywhere near Harrods Christmas food hall display – but they have a damned good Tassie try.
Why don’t you too just pop in there one day and dream, as you wander the aisles? You never know, you might just buy something there too.
Tuesday, 2 December 2008
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19 comments:
We use it from time to time, Rita. The staff are very friendly and helpful.
You always spend more than you planned because it's a great-fun place to shop and discover treats.
Pity the owner trets his staff like dirt. Must have the highest attrition rate in Hobart. I won.t shop there on principle for that reason. Pity though as it has so much potential.
Yes I heard that about him too but there are many owners like that.surely sals has the highest attrition rate.
Harrods food hall. SIGH. This time last year I was IN Harrods food hall, and the christmas displays....Grumble. Lipscombe are not my favourite BUT they do do a damn good party platter. They also have a fairly decent edible range of GF muffins and stuff.
Personally I miss Marks & Spencer, but then I am a self confessed sad twat.
Been to Lipscombe loads, and Hill street and the Gourmet deli. In fact a whole plethora of places.
I get Rita's point about shopping being a tedious sport and the joy of everything under one roof. My own experiences tend to be of being a walking ATM for those I am with. Occasionally asked to grunt approval when faced with their indecisions. Ahh well.. Christmas approaches, the pulse in my walet just weakened at the thought.
Cartouche
Cartouche - NOTHING beats Marks and Sparks sangers.
I went into a Waitrose when I was there...OH LORDY I mentally spent WAAY to much money.
I used to miss Marks and Sparks lots but on my last visit a couple of years back was disapointed.
I love their big peanuts and their canned curry (yes, believe me) used to be a thing of wonder.
The prawn crackers. etc. Satrurday night was never any good without a range of Markies snacks on the table with drinks.
On Sundays we used to have one of their Country Cakes with a cuppa, now they are so small they should be marked individual country cake.
Maybe it was just the branch we were at but they were out of lots of things and many things had disappeared.
Of course maybe its because I'm a cranky old bastard.
I love Harrods...last time I was there, there was an opera singer on the staircase and a sign that said don't disturb the pets it's their nap time...class...
...does anybody know where I can get an eel?
From the Conga?
Jedd, thats funny, I just laughed my head off on that one.
Ut Si, I have a mate who fishes Eels in the Huon river, apparently they are quit prolific in that neck of the woods. So I'm guessing maybe trying the fish punts in that neck of the woods.
If your talking Moray, then again any rocky shore should do that.
Give Bruce a ring at Stingray seafoods. he should be able to point you in the right direction.
I'm not a huge fan of eel but i tried my mates smoked eel, and it was'nt too bad. Hope that helps.
Cartouche
Hi Rita
Unfortunately Lipscombe Larder is the wrong direction for me, otherwise I would be tempted. I have for many years been a regular at the Salad Bowl, for a combination of convenience, price and quality (especially fruit and veg - the grocery lines are, like all corner shops, exhorbitant). I have noticed quite a decline in quality over the past few months in the fruit and veg, together with increases in price. In the past the quality was above supermarket prices, and the quality much better. Now it seems to be the reverse (especially green beans for some reason - nearly 50% more in price and really very sad looking specimens on offer).
this is all a real shame for me, as it is a very convenient location for me. I have also noticed that I don't have to wait quite so long in the queue - fewer customers?
Susannah
I think the salad bowl has really gone down hill. AND they would be contenders for the highest staff turnover - there isn't a familiar face left, and tehy have no idea of what the produce is (i shouldn't have to explain the difference between a lebanese cucumber and a zucchini). I agree about the mouldy beans (and the slimy asparagus), plus I got some ham on special last week that was on the nose - no wonder it was on special!!
Hmmmmm. I'm hearing you with the Salad Bowl standards. They haven't been my favoured shopping venue, even though they are just round the corner from me, so I'll more often than not bypass SB and shop at Hill St as they are way more friendly, efficient and have lots more variety of excellent quality fresh fruit & veg.
And yes, Susannah, you're right about the queue there. I popped in for milk at 5.20 the other night, expecting to a) not be able to get a parking spot nearby or b) have to queue to pay for ever - neither of which eventuated. I got a parking spot right outside (at 5.20pm - what's that about???), then had a tough decision deciding which manned-but-queueless checkout to use to pay for my milk!
That tells you something.
But - a hint - I was in Lindisfarne on Saturday, shopping at the local Woollies. Was intending to cook Mushroom Lasagne, so ideally wanted the brown flat mushies in preference to button mushies, but noticed that where there is usually at least a $3-$5/kg discrepancy between the cost of the button and brown mushrooms, at that Woollies they were priced the same. So naturally my dish was made with predominantly brown mushies.
The staff at Salad Bowl were useless last time we were in. Clueless at the checkout and very offhand.
My missus was waiting and a girl just came from stage left and waltzed into a berth with NO queue and said who's next?
A couple of blokes went to go for it before the missus yelled out I AM, THANKS.
The reluctant assistant had to sashay along to our checkout with a big miserable look on her face.
As I said it was our LAST visit. The prices....well, come on.
Hmmm, yes..... but like you Rita I live so near that it is more like a "convenience store" than a deli. If I lived nearer to Lipscombe Larder (and had a car) I would go there more often as they have some things I love (a walnut bread like one I used to get in Austria) you can't get anywhere else. But their fruit and veg wasn't up to much on my last visit, whereas I can usually get what I want/need at SB. But I have lost count of the number of times the checkout staff have asked me what kind of fruit my quinces were!!
what a terrible crime, faux knight! your story is distressing, and full of so many capital letters! this girl who upset you, and your missus, obviously doesn't recognize the customers' importance and is probably thinking of frivolous things like love, study or even beauty. you poor thing, you must have felt insignificant.
No not really,Silv. But thanks for the concern. There were about 8 of us in that forlorn queue. We weren't really that upset. You know how it is, Silv, old girl, you just want to be valued as a customer, like everyone in the queue.
By the way, I use capital letter for EMPHASIS. It's hard to get emotion over on the cold hard computer, as you may have guessed.
I read into your lower case that you genuinely felt for us. What a lovely fairy. A precious metal one too. If you have anything else of worth to share please feel free, we all like to muck in together.
So, get your tutu ready and your little wand and ballet pumps and be ready to give us a little pirouette any timeyou like. Spread the love sister.
Try Woollies "Deli" at Kingston, There "Take a Ticket" machine has been out of tickets for weeks and still no riots.
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